Rochester Robbery and Shooting Suspects Charged

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - The two adult suspects in a robbery last weekend were formally charged Friday in Olmsted County Court. While both 19-year-old men were charged in connection with the theft of an expensive Louis Vuitton purse and cell phone from a 16-year-old boy, Rochester police they are also considered suspects in a rolling gun battle that took place in northwest Rochester Tuesday evening.

Ron Burks, who is accused of actually robbing the teenager early Sunday, was charged with first-degree aggravated robbery while Thaddeus Merritt, who has a Las Vegas address, is charged with aiding an offender, accomplice after the fact. As of Friday night, both men were still being held in the Olmsted County Jail. Conditional bail for Burks was set at $50,000, while the amount for Merritt is $5,000.

In naming the men suspects in Tuesday’s shooting, Rochester police have identified Merritt as the owner of the blue Audi that was seized by investigators after it was found near the site of a chase and exchange of gunfire between the occupants of a blue car and a black vehicle in the Lincolnshire neighborhood just north of the Home Depot and Target North stores. Three guns were found inside the car along with some personal items belonging to Burks.